[Q] DIsappearing widgets with new Google Launcher on Nexus 7 - Nexus 7 Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting

I have installed the Google Launcher (from Nexus 5) on my Nexus 4, 7 and 10. It seems to work fine on my Nexus 4 (though it clearly not optimised for it, not surprised of course) but I'm finding most of my widgets and some icons have disappeared on my Nexus 7. I spent quite a while setting up quite a few home pages but since then a lot of the pages have completely disappeared and some icons have gone. Also, I'm trying to drag Google Play to the bottom icon line but disappears as soon as move away from the home page and back again. Folders appear OK though.
Anyone else experiencing this? I'm wondering if there is a newer version of the launcher? I can't find anything other than the one originally released.
I'll return to the original launcher on my Nexus 7.

Related

Widget resize after update to 4.2.1

So usually I have a Google music and a Pandora widget on the same row on my home screen. Today I noticed that after rearranging a couple of things, I cannot get either of the 2 widgets to resize. Which I must have been able to do before right? Anyone else notice this?
Sent from my 32GB Nexus 7

KitKat 4.4 - Can't add Home screens

Fresh install of 4.4 on my Nexus 7(2012). Also installed the new Google launcher apk, but I can't add any more home screens. Tried dropping an app to the right but a new home screen never appears.
Anyone else experience this?
Sent from my Nexus 7 using xda app-developers app
erics88 said:
Fresh install of 4.4 on my Nexus 7(2012). Also installed the new Google launcher apk, but I can't add any more home screens. Tried dropping an app to the right but a new home screen never appears.
Anyone else experience this?
Sent from my Nexus 7 using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi, erics88...
Yes, I have had the same problem... I think it's a bug in the LAUNCHER.APK itself... which is actually just a 'stub', that calls upon Google Search (which is now the real home launcher). And based on my experiments, the only way to make it work correctly, is to first enable Google Now.
Try the following... go to the GOOGLE SEARCH BAR at the top of the screen... and begin to type in some search word or phrase... You should see, in blue text, the words 'Get Google Now'... tap on this, and you'll be taken to a screen where you can optionally opt in to Google Now. Tap on the blue 'YES, I'M IN' button at the bottom right hand corner of the screen.
A dialogue box should then appear, asking which Google Account (gmail account) to use. If you have more than one (as I have)... tap on the one you want to use. Press the BACK BUTTON to take you back to the launcher home screen.
You should now have Google Now 'cards' as a screen in it's own right (at the far left)... and dragging app icons toward the right hand edge of the screen should now dynamically create more home screens.
Apologies for the convoluted explanation... but it's really tricky explaining this stuff in a way that is understandable.
Anyway... hope this helps.
Rgrds,
Ged.
Nope - maybe need to re-install
Thanks for the help. My apologies for not giving all the details.
I have the Google Now cards showing up on the left screen but no matter what I try, I can not get a third screen. I used the same apk files on my Galaxy Nexus (rooted stock 4.3) and the Google launcher & Search work great, but I have the same issue. Only 2 Home screens and can't create another one by dragging an app icon towards the right.
Maybe I have a corrupt apk file. I'll try removing the launcher and search from both of my devices. Then I try to located the apk files from a different source. I'l post an update later this evening (EST)
Thanks again!
just a reminder.. make sure u have at least 1 shortcut in the 2nd home screen before trying to add a 3rd screen..
i tried million times to add a 3rd screen in vain when i left the 2nd screen empty (just wanna leave it blank and add some widgets later)..
a bug? i think so.. maybe google think otherwise..
iamelton said:
just a reminder.. make sure u have at least 1 shortcut in the 2nd home screen before trying to add a 3rd screen..
i tried million times to add a 3rd screen in vain when i left the 2nd screen empty (just wanna leave it blank and add some widgets later)..
a bug? i think so.. maybe google think otherwise..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi, iamelton...
I don't think it's a bug - I think it's intentional. Home screens are created dynamically, as and when you drag app icons to the right hand edge of the screen to create them.
Consider this... let's suppose you have five screens (excluding the Google Now screen), all with app icons on them... and the last screen contains just one app icon. For whatever reason, you either delete it, or drag it to the left in order to drop it onto screen number four. Screen number five vanishes.
Similarly, if you delete everything on the middle screen (screen number three in my five screen example), all the other screens will be 'pushed' to the left by one. The middle screen now no longer exists, because it is empty.
With Google Experience Launcher, unlike third party launchers such as Apex, Nova or Go Launcher, it's impossible to create launcher screens that are blank. They must have something on them... whether that be a widget, shortcut or an app icon.
To put it another way... in GEL, a launcher homescreen only exists if something is occupying it.
Rgrds,
Ged.
GedBlake said:
Hi, iamelton...
I don't think it's a bug - I think it's intentional. Home screens are created dynamically, as and when you drag app icons to the right hand edge of the screen to create them.
Consider this... let's suppose you have five screens (excluding the Google Now screen), all with app icons on them... and the last screen contains just one app icon. For whatever reason, you either delete it, or drag it to the left in order to drop it onto screen number four. Screen number five vanishes.
Similarly, if you delete everything on the middle screen (screen number three in my five screen example), all the other screens will be 'pushed' to the left by one. The middle screen now no longer exists, because it is empty.
With Google Experience Launcher, unlike third party launchers such as Apex, Nova or Go Launcher, it's impossible to create launcher screens that are blank. They must have something on them... whether that be a widget, shortcut or an app icon.
To put it another way... in GEL, a launcher homescreen only exists if something is occupying it.
Rgrds,
Ged.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
yeah i understand the "ideal" embedded in the new GEL..
its just my own preference that i dont like the idea of dynamic screen handling..
say i wanna add a new screen in between screen no.3 and no. 4.. cant imagine an easy way to do this..
can only think of first adding a new screen 6, moving all apps from 5 to 6 (but leaving 1 in screen 5 to prevent the screen from being deleted), moving all apps from 4 to 5 (leaving 1 in screen 4 again), then adding my intended apps to screen 4, moving the 1 previous app in screen 4 to 5, and finally moving the 1 previous app in screen 5 to 6.. great now im done..
can u do better to beat me?
Thanks everyone for the help. I just started over with a new 4.4 install and used pa_gapps-modular-mini-4.4-20131118 instead of the launcher apk. Now I can add more screens, but I have a feeling my main screen might have been empty when I was trying to add a third screen earlier.
Might go back and try the launcher apk on my Galaxy Nexus 4.3 phone just to test this out.
Sent from my Nexus 7 using xda app-developers app
UPDATE: Doh! yep, you need to have a icon/widget on your main screen before you can add a third screen.
Thanks iamelton!!!
Or just use Nova Launcher from the play store !

[Q] Transparent Nav Bar - KitKat 4.4

Hi there, I wasn't able to find an answer to this and didn't want to hijack the "GEL coming to all 4.1+ devices?" thread under General..
When I first upgraded my Nexus 7 (2012, WiFi) tablet to KitKat and installed the GEL/latest Google Search - I had the transparent navigation bar AND status bar. However today I noticed the navigation bar at the bottom is no longer transparent, while the status bar at the top still is.
The only thing I can think of that I've changed is I've rooted my tablet with the latest SuperSU. Anyone have some ideas? Once I get home tonight I'll try unrooting it and see if that fixes it, but that seems rather odd it would break that.
Curious if anyone else has noticed this or knows of a fix? Thank you.
Install the GEL launcher again (just the launcher) and you will get it, it'll only be transparent on the homescreen though.
And unless you use Google Now a lot and perform A LOT of google searches, GEL is completely useless if you ask me.
issak42 said:
Install the GEL launcher again (just the launcher) and you will get it, it'll only be transparent on the homescreen though.
And unless you use Google Now a lot and perform A LOT of google searches, GEL is completely useless if you ask me.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I will try that out when I get home tonight - makes sense.
Agreed on the Launcher on all accounts - but I actually do use Now quite a bit, and love the voice capabilities. And the transparency is oh so purty :victory: Definitely not for everyone, I can see why Google hasn't pushed it out yet. My only beef is the missing Play store button at the top right corner of the app list
There is the launcher extracted from Nexus 5
http://www.androidpolice.com/2013/1...once-you-get-your-kitkat-update-apk-download/

[Q] 4.4 Update nothing like Nexus 5

It's not even close to being similar.
What's going on?
edit: What's missing:
Translucent menu bar
Translucent dock
The inability to add/remove home pages
Translucent app drawer - App drawer no different. Still shows widgets
Messaging app is still there - Good point though
To sum up, it looks like Jelly Bean..
sure it is. so the status bar isnt clear. install the Google Experience launcher if you didnt install it yet.
simms22 said:
sure it is. so the status bar isnt clear. install the Google Experience launcher if you didnt install it yet.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
From where?
craiigman said:
From where?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's strange Google becomes easier and more accessible yet people still rather ask on a forum. And wait.
Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk
From memory, the same happened with 4.2/4.3 on the Galaxy Nexus vs Nexus 4. They were similar, but there were differences between them. One that springs to mind was the Nexus4 shipped with "Chrome" whereas the Galaxy Nexus had "Browser". There was other bits and bobs that were different between them too, and i remember thinking it was pretty strange, given they were supposed to be both running "vanilla" android.
Search or read existing threads this has been discussed countless of times. Install Nexus 5 port or buy a Nexus 5.
craiigman said:
It's not even close to being similar.
What's going on?
edit: What's missing:
Translucent menu bar
Translucent dock
The inability to add/remove home pages
Translucent app drawer - App drawer no different. Still shows widgets
Messaging app is still there - Good point though
To sum up, it looks like Jelly Bean..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
1. the n4 doesnt get the translucent bar.
2. same with the clock
3. install the google experience launcher, its not default
4. see#3
5. open google hangouts and except hangouts as your messaging app(same on n5).
so it turns out only the translucent bar and clock are different. does that make the n5 and n4 4.4 roms not even close to being similar, no.

[Q] Installed 4.4.2, now have only 5 icons across????

Howdy...
I have a stock Asus Nexus 7. After installing 4.4.0, I really liked the new Google Launcher with the 'swipe left' for Google Now.
Like the original launcher, I still had 6 icons across on the new Google Launcher. 4.4.1 was fine too...
However, yesterday, I received the OTA update for 4.4.2. Now the same Google Launcher only has 5 icons across the home screen, which is much worse...
Anyone know how I can get 6 across back without downgrading?
Thanks!
Best,
Ben

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